My shout … or yours… a closer look at dependency ratios

Esther - Team Forecast

Esther joined .id after working in the demography teams at both Statistics New Zealand and the Australian Bureau of Statistics producing national and regional statistics. Esther produces the top-down model for .id’s SAFi (Small Area Forecast information). This involves synthesising overseas, interstate and regional migration patterns to quantify regional change. Esther loves the way statistics assist in understanding our communities and can dispell urban myths or stereotypes.

You may also like...

4 Responses

  1. Dependency ratios can easily be calculated from profile.id for LGAs.

    Here are a few I’ve worked out.

    City of Yarra (Vic) – 27.7
    City of Campbelltown (NSW) – 45.3
    Shire of Roebourne (WA) – 28.5 (almost all in the younger category – older dependency ratio here is 1.9 !)
    Great Lakes Council (NSW) – 84.1
    Victor Harbour (SA) – 92.3

  2. Steven Millar says:

    Your statement is inaccurate: “The 2011 Australian Census results tell us that 19.3% of the population is aged under 15, and 14% are over 65. The remaining 66.7% are aged 15-64. The calculation below shows the Australian total dependency ratio in 2011 was 49.9. So, in theory, roughly half of the population is of working-age and supporting the other half of the population, who are either children or retired.”

    Your calculation was correct but the statement of half the population (49.9) being supported by the other half (theoretically 50.1) is wrong. 49.9 is a ratio. It represents 49.9:100 or 0.49:1 meaning the working population supports just under half of itself. A more accurate statement would be roughly one third of the population is supported by two-thirds of the population.

  3. D Chama says:

    The higher the dependency ratio the lower the standard of living. If the trend is continued, a lot of pressure is exalted on the able bodied making them less able. Their carrying capacity dwindles as the rate of manufacturing children increases added to higher life expectancy for the old dependents.

  4. Anonymous says:

    I would like to ask- is the dependency ratio a proportion?

Leave a Reply to Glenn - The Census Expert Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

.id blog